A Very Short Novel

A one-person performance by Ilya Ilyin based on the pages of stories “Coward,” “From the Memoirs of Private Ivanov,” and “A Very Short Novel.” These stories by Vsevolod Garshin were especially popular; they reflected his military impressions after participating in Russia’s war with Turkey… The main hero болезненно воспринимает жестокость человеческих поступков и зло, причиняемое войной. For Ivanov, war remains one shared suffering, but he still comes to terms with its inevitability. He lacks individualism or egocentrism, which serves as convincing proof of the deep spiritual and moral growth of Garshin’s hero from one story to the next. His thoughts and actions are now guided by a conscious desire to be part of a flow that knows no obstacles and “will break everything, twist everything, and destroy everything.” The hero is seized by a feeling of unity with the people, who can advance selflessly and subject themselves to danger for freedom and justice. Ivanov grows deeply sympathetic to this people and, together with them, selflessly endures all hardships. Under the influence of this “unconscious” force, the hero seems to “detach” from his “self” and dissolve into a living human mass.